Tool: Wordle

Wordle: Aesthetics#1 on Booth Reading:
1. Discuss your thought process when exploring/selecting this particular tool.
I enjoyed using this Wordle tool. It was fun to play around with and try all the different fonts and colors. Using this tool, it was easy to get the main ideas out of the chapters we had to read and make it easier to understand. The Booth reading was hard to put in just a few words but I like how Wordle makes it easy to get all your thoughts together. It was also a fun tool to play around with. Having all my thoughts in order was easy for me understand the reading better.

2. What are your general thoughts regarding this tool? Easy vs. difficult, instructions given etc…
My general thoughts for this tool was it was easy once everything was together, putting the colors and fonts together was fun. Exploring all the different angles and placements of the words was fun also. Trying to describe the main points in each chapter and section was the hardest part of the tool. The instructions on Wordle were very easy and understandable.

3. What specifically did you learn by using this tool?
Organization skills are gained through using Wordle. This will help out in all my classes, getting all my thoughts together easily and putting it into words can help me remember main concepts. Typical typing skills are used that can help with online classes.

4. How would you envision using this tool when teaching Aesthetic Education in an elementary classroom?
This is an easy tool that even younger elementary school students will be able to take their ideas and put them in summary form for all students to understand easier. This tool could be used often in a classroom setting where group projects could take place. Having different groups respond to each Wordle with their own, getting main points across in an easy fun colorful way.

Tool: Scrapblogs

#2 on Maxine Greene Reading:
1. Discuss your thought process when exploring/selecting this particular tool.
Again this was a fun tool to use. I would recommend it to anyone. It helped me bring out my creative side, scrap booking is fun and relaxing. It was also fun looking at all the different backgrounds, frames, and stickers you could use.

2. What are your general thoughts regarding this tool? Easy vs. difficult, instructions given etc…
Using this tool was very easy. It didn't take a lot of work to make the page. When adding too many things, it does get confusing on where you are putting certain words or shapes and sometimes i would grab the wrong shape or delete it by accident. The hardest part for me was putting on my wiki site. It took a couple tried to get it to show up instead of making this a link.

3. What specifically did you learn by using this tool?
From this tool I learned how to make scrap books online. This is a cool tool to use for classes (such as Aesthetics) or for my own personal enjoyment.

4. How would you envision using this tool when teaching Aesthetic Education in an elementary classroom?
Through this activity students could learn how to express themselves creativity as well as technologically, both skills each student should have or gain. Group or single person projects could be accomplished when using this tool. Art, music, or video could be displayed using scrapblogs.

Tool: Adobe Photoshop Express
My Choice

#3 On Booth Reading:
1. Discuss your thought process when exploring/selecting this particular tool.
Like Eric Booth says throughout his readings that anything can be art. Most children can recognize characters from the Toy Story movies. This picture is changed from its original to have a blue hue. This shows kids that even though it is edited it can still be recognized and understood. It shows that not everything has to be exactly the same, thats the best thing about art, nothing has to "follow the rules", and this I think is an important note Booth points out in his chapters.

2. What are your general thoughts regarding this tool? Easy vs. difficult, instructions given etc…
Using this tool was fairly easy. Being my third wiki posting it was pretty simple. Using this tool was fun also. I really enjoyed using all the different colors and "decorations" that could be added to the picture. I also liked the sample pictures, that way you could see what each editing tool did.

3. What specifically did you learn by using this tool?
From using this tool I learned how to photoshop pictures with different and interesting tools. Using different hues, can change the picture dramatically; the different hues (red, blue, green, yellow, etc) make the same photo look so different.

4. How would you envision using this tool when teaching Aesthetic Education in an elementary classroom?
Using this tool in the classroom could should students how to photoshop images, see how different colors, or blurred pictures change the whole effect. There are two text boxes above each characters head. It would also be interesting to have each student write what they think they are talking about and then compare it with the class. Color could play a role in this, if the background was red, some may think one of the characters is mad; since the background is blue I think of a more relaxed. This would be a fun relaxed activity for the whole class.